Have you ever wondered what it’s like to co-author a book vs writing on your own? Or maybe you were curious how your favorite authors do it?

A.M. Strickland is here today to chat about just that and share her latest book, Beyond the Black Door (out Oct. 29 from Imprint)! Check out the guest post below and don’t forget to pre-order your copy and send your receipt in for the incentive!

The Differences Between Writing a Book Solo vs Co-Authoring

by A.M. Strickland

I first began writing as a solo author. Though not many people know them, my first books were published with a smaller press that went bankrupt, and I was never able to finish my series. (Sorry, really awesome kids who still write me, wondering what the heck happened to that third book!) I found the whole process of writing a novel challenging, as most people do, and occasionally downright grueling. There were days where I felt like I was beating my head against a wall.

So when I started writing a sci-fi series, beginning with Shadow Run, with coauthor Michael Miller, it was a breath of fresh air. Challenging passage? Ask for a second opinion. Stuck on a description or character reaction? Brainstorm! Or, better yet, I could leave that spot blank with a note for my coauthor that said, “Hey, do this, pleaaase!”

All around, the collaboration of coauthoring was incredibly fun, and I would definitely do it again, but … as I’ve grown as a writer, I’ve come to find that there’s one thing, at least, that’s easier about solo-authoring, beyond the nuts and bolts of putting a story together and hammering out different scenes.

Victoria Scwab has said that she writes all of her books for herself (or different versions of herself), and it was a light bulb moment for me. I think through tapping into something deeply personal, a sort of magic happens that makes a book able to touch more people. Coming back to solo-authoring, I’ve found it easier to write a book that is wholly for me—for obvious reasons. I’ve lost that fun collaboration, but it’s easier to have a have a conversation with myself and dig for those deeply personal moments that resonate the best. Not that it’s easy, by any means, or that I’ve succeeded in writing a moving story, but Beyond the Black Door is definitely the book of my heart, the most for me thing I’ve ever written, and I hope other people feel it, as well.

About the Book

Kamai was warned never to open the black door, but she didn't listen ...

Everyone has a soul. Some are beautiful gardens, others are frightening dungeons. Soulwalkers―like Kamai and her mother―can journey into other people's souls while they sleep.

But no matter where Kamai visits, she sees the black door. It follows her into every soul, and her mother has told her to never, ever open it.

When Kamai touches the door, it is warm and beating, like it has a pulse. When she puts her ear to it, she hears her own name whispered from the other side. And when tragedy strikes, Kamai does the unthinkable: she opens the door.

A.M. Strickland's imaginative dark fantasy features court intrigue and romance, a main character coming to terms with her asexuality, and twists and turns as a seductive mystery unfolds that endangers not just Kamai's own soul, but the entire kingdom...

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Pre-Order Incentive

If you pre-ordered Beyond the Black Door, make sure to submit your receipt to receive 2 character cards and a signed bookplate!

click here for details